1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an automatic icemaker which carries out water supplying, ice making and ice discharging.
2. Description of the Related Art
A conventional automatic icemaker pours water into an ice-tray having a prescribed shape, detaches ice pieces from the ice-tray by using a heater after making the ice pieces by refrigerating the water with the cold air of the freezer, and scrapes out the ice pieces by turning an ice discharging arm with a motor.
Another conventional automatic icemaker twists the ice-tray to detach the produced ice pieces more easily from the ice-tray, thereby releases the ice pieces from its adhesion to the ice-tray, and transfers the ice pieces to an ice storage box.
In still another conventional automatic icemaker, a thermosensitive displacement element, typically a bimetal element or a shape memory element, whose shape varies at a temperature below 0° C., is arranged on the bottom face of each of the ice partitions provided in the ice-tray, and each ice piece is detached by the deforming force of this thermosensitive displacement element.
However, the conventional automatic icemaker equipped with an ice detaching heater, since it applies heat to the ice-tray by using a heater within the freezer, the power consumption of the freezer increases with a corresponding rise in the ice making cost.
In the second conventional automatic icemaker which detaches ice pieces from the ice-tray by twisting the ice-tray, the repetition of the water supplying, ice making and ice discharging sequence causes frequent stresses to be applied to the ice-tray, whose durability is thereby affected, resulting in a need to replace the ice-tray frequently.
For the conventional automatic icemaker which detaches ice pieces by the deforming force of thermosensitive displacement elements which requires installation of a thermosensitive displacement element on the bottom face of each of the ice partitions, the ice-tray is made expensive.